The Scenic View

A few weeks ago some friends and I went hiking. We took a picture in front of a beautiful waterfall, went over a boardwalk, and admired some unique flora.

At one point in the trail we came to a sign that read, “Scenic View,” with an arrow pointing off the path. We were on somewhat of a schedule but decided it would be worth it for the scenic view.

It was not a long hike, and when we came to the opening, or the end, it was still just trees. Nothing scenic. There was nowhere else to go. The scenery was the trees, mud, and rocks we had seen so far. We even climbed up the steep mountainside, which took us a bit higher, but it also turned out to be nothing but more trees. The original sign would’ve been more accurate had it read, “Dead End - This Way.”

We headed back to the main trail and continued. It ended up being incredibly steep, but thankfully someone had put some stakes in the ground and put rope through them as helps.

We reached more level ground, though were much higher than before. We kept walking, came to the edge of a cliff, and looked over. It was stunning.

There had been no “Scenic View” sign, but we took lots of pictures. We saw the St. Croix river below with kayakers. We even saw some eagles.

As we kept going on the trail, I couldn’t help but think about how this relates to life in general. How many signs are there that say, “Scenic View - This Way,” when it’s an empty promise and dead end? I think of Matthew 7:13: “Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it.” There is the wide gate, or scenic path, that many follow but only leads to more trees.

The narrow gate has no sign and is pretty steep at some parts, but there are ropes there to help. Someone has gone before us and put them there (1 Pet. 2:21). Prayer. Meditation. Fellowship. The Word and Spirit of God. We’re not left to do it alone. And the view at the end is stunning.